Behind the hair, skin, gender, status, culture, class, language, fashion, and faith, who am I?

I am my message. I am the unique world-view I’m yearning to share. But — I’ve been scratching at its surface, poking around the edges, unwilling to fully embrace it. Why? 

FEAR.

Fear that you won’t like it. Fear that you’ll think I’m a religion freak. Fear that you’ll think my view is wrong. Fear that I AM wrong.

Fear makes me hide. Hiding suffocates.

I’M COMING OUT.

Those who know me won’t be a bit surprised. But that’s how it is with coming out. Everyone else knows before you do.

Yet I need to recognize, claim, and be me. I need to say who I am, out loud, to myself and to those who care.

That means sharing my message. And getting to breathe.

When a parent said, “Lauren, you have to write about what you do so there WON’T be religious conflict or refugees in the world,” my closet door cracked.

When a colleague wrote, “Lauren, the mass shootings, empty consumerism, and addiction to technology reflect a lack of spirituality that you’re helping to correct,” my courage kicked in. Or out.

But I had to reinstate two words I banished from my vocabulary long ago: every and should. I dropped them to avoid judging others. To avoid being judged. In the process, I dropped my voice. Now I’m grabbing it back.

Here Am I: 

1. Every YOUNG PERSON should DEVELOP not just physically, emotionally, and mentally, but SPIRITUALLY, for the sake of our evolutionary survival and thrival. This means learning to act from a place of wisdom and compassion that crosses religious boundaries. Spiritual growth today calls for teaching religion from a “post-religious” perspective.

2. Every PARENT & TEACHER, CLERIC & COUNSELOR should HELP YOUNG PEOPLE EVOLVE SPIRITUALLY, TO GROW BEYOND RELIGION. That does not mean throwing out religion, nor staying in it. Religion is not a static identity but a dynamic relationship, and we move with and through it. 

3. EveryONE can lead purpose-filled, peace-loving, meaningful lives in a world that benefits all by EVOLVING SPIRITUALLY. Young people need experiences that develop their consciousness to succeed in an interspiritual, global age.

There’s more.

I’m not just coming out.

I’m promising, based on years of quiet practice teaching young people and working with families, to provide you with options, ideas, activities, and guides for learning from religion in order to grow with and beyond it.

I don’t have all the answers, but I’ve given this a lot of thought and have had the benefit of testing ideas with a group of amazing students. 

Okay, I’m OUT. Let me know if you’re IN.

PHEW!

Check out my Resources on teaching religion in an interspiritual age.